W♥M (Archive)

Suckers at 400 Bar, Minneapolis (5/17/10)

Suckers - A Mind I Knew Suckers Tour Dates 05/28/10 Vancouver, BC - Media Club* 05/31/10 Seattle, WA – Comet Tavern 06/02/10 SF CA - Rickshaw Stop* 06/03/10 SF, CA - Bottom of the Hill* 06/04/10 LA, CA – Troubadour * 06/05/10 LA, CA – Spaceland 06/17/10 Phila, PA - First Unitarian 06/18/10 Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall 06/29/10 Brooklyn, NY - Prospect & 06/30/10 NY – Governor’s Island & *With Local Natives & With Passion Pit, Tokyo Police Club Download BUY “Black Sheep” single @ iTunes. Free download of "A Mind I Knew" from the band’s June 8 full-length debut, Wild Smile (Frenchkiss Records)

It's a good thing I got there early because this show had sold out for months already.  The majority of the fans I spoke with were there to see The Local Natives, but  were very impressed with the opening performance as well.  The 400 bar was heavily packed long before either band stepped on stage to start playing.  It was one of the hottest days of the year so far and I have a small request for the 400 bar- VENTILATION PLEASE.  With the full house and little to no air movement, it was very stuffy and tough to breath; let alone rock out with the jammin' music, but the show must go on, so the artists, the music fans danced through the heat.
 
For many of you I will be introducing for the first time the Suckers. A Brooklyn based band that gained rapid local and national attention shortly after their self-titled EP was released in 2009. All of the band members were very musically talented and cultured. All of the songs I remember involved several of the guys playing more than one instrument at a time and harmonizing the vocals. I believe it was my first time witnessing a guitar/bass player rockin' some percussion in between beats on the strings. Very nice!

Their style and sound reminded me very much of Modest Mouse, a band that I am also very fond of. With excellent harmony and chemistry the Suckers managed to bounce the fans in the house and solidify their name here in Minneapolis. They came equipped with tons of energy and sounded great throughout the whole setlist. I don’t see them opening for bands much longer, so all you music heads out there get out and see them now so you can claim that you were a fan “long before they were huge”. 

05/27/2010 21:41:06♥ jared () ♥ suckersmusic.com ♥ myspace.com ♥ twitter.com

Rx Bandits at Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis (04/06/10)

RX Bandits - My Lonesome Only Friend RX Bandits Tour Dates 04/14/10 Boardwalk* Orangevale, CA 04/15/10 Slim’s* San Francisco, CA 04/17/10 Coachella Indio, CA 04/23/10 Glass House Pomona, CA 04/25/10 Downtown Brewing SLObispo, CA 05/24/10 Oxford Academy 2^ Oxford 05/25/10 Fleece & Firkin^ Bristol 05/26/10 Joiners^ Southampton, South 05/28/10 Academy 3^ Manchester 05/29/10 Slam Dunk Festival Hatfield 05/30/10 Slam Dunk Festival Leeds 05/31/10 Academy 3^ Birmingham 06/01/10 King Tut’s^ Glasgow, Scotland 06/02/10 The Underworld^ London 06/03/10 Nouveau Casino^ Paris 06/05/10 Moby Dick^ Madrid, Madrid 06/06/10 La De Apolo^ Barcelona 06/08/10 Sabotage Bar^ Vicenza 06/09/10 Flex^ Vienna 06/10/10 59 To 1^ Munich 06/11/10 Magnet^ Berlin 06/12/10 Underground^ Cologne 06/14/10 Grüner Jäger^ Hamburg 06/15/10 Melkweg^ Amsterdam * w/ The Builders and The Butchers and Zechs Marquise ^ w/ Moneen Discography [1997] Those Damn Bandits [1999] Halfway Between Here and There [2001] Progress [2003] The Resignation [2006] ...And the Battle Begun [2009] Mandala Read More Rx Bandits http://weheartmus... Rx Bandits is basically a prog-rock and "metamorphic rock" band from Southern, California. Origin...

I was curious as to why the show began so early (5 PM), but it made more sense when I learned that it was an 18+ concert.   Arriving at the Triple Rock about twenty minutes before the scheduled opening, I had time to stop in both sides (sectioned off for 21+ and 18+) of the club before the music started.  Upon waiting for the show to begin, I had the pleasure of sitting next to a couple guys from The Builders and the Butchers- Alexander Ellis (bass guitar, vocals, percussion), and Harvey Tumbleson (mandolin, banjo, guitar, vocals, percussion). I had a chance to talk with them and get a feel for how the tour had been treating them. The members of the three bands seem to get along very well and help each other out beyond the limits of musical support.  Recently the "builders" vehicle was in a wreck and the kind folks of the RX Bandits helped with transportation of the equipment and band members until the situation was remedied.  After a couple of Surly Coffee Benders with the "Builders" and a quick tour of the RX Bandit's bus it was time to go see Zechs Marquise for the opening act. 

A little late due to some trouble for their kick drum Zechs Marquise wasted no time getting the room filled with chest thumping bass and percussion.  The brothers (Marcel and Marfred) interacted very well with the crowd and each other during the show. Taking the time to pump up the crowd and fill up the dance space seemed to have a positive effect in exciting the scattered attendance.  Appropriately described on their MySpace page as a Rock/Progressive/Psychedelic band, ZM delivers a high energy vibe to the music world through their own unique progressive trippy instrumental style.  This band consists of the two brothers and some childhood friends (Matthew Wilkson, Marcos Smith) and their close chemistry is well complimented with their onstage presence. Zechs Marquise is a fresh, tightly knit band that released their first album only a couple of years ago I look forward to seeing them progress and come out with a strong following after their North American tour.  

The second band to the stage were Alaska natives The Builders and the Butchers.  Referring to Portland as "home" the Builders credit the city with their introduction to "American Roots Music". This Folksy style band that has a pair of drummers (Ray Rude/Brandon Hafe) pounding out the percussion and getting the crowd moving.  Their unique sound is made up of a fine blend of acoustic bass guitar, dual percussion, keyboard, and a medley of guitar, mandolin and banjo.  The performance was moving and began filling the Triple rock with high energy and a happy crowd. At times the vocals were a bit hard to make out, but the music and over all sound of the band was exciting and vibrant.  A stellar performance and I look forward to seeing this band again.  Alexander and Harvey agreed that Minneapolis was one of their favorite places to play on the road because of the friendly people and shared passion for music. Minnesota will be glad to welcome back the great sound and people of the Builders and the Butchers.

 

RX Bandits at Triple Rock, Minneapolis (04/06/10)

To give you a feel of the final performing band of the night, picture a slightly mellowed ska vibe mixed with a funky reggae twist.  Lead singer/guitarist Matt Embree delivered a well executed vocal performance complimented by the likes of multi-talented Steve Choi (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals).  Matt decided to give himself a hair cut on stage a few songs into the set and that was just the beginning of the unforeseen events soon to unravel.  The RX Bandits had a special unexpected guest which I have dubbed "bob the drummer" appear on the set.  About 3/4 into the 5th song most of the band members stepped offstage, the security guard left is post, and "Bob" jumped at the chance to make his debut. He walked up on stage and proceeded to hit the drums until politely asked to leave by a few of the remaining band members that were still performing.   Handled with class and topped off with a joke they finished the song and Bob returned to where he belonged, THE AUDIENCE.  Soon enough we returned to the music we all came to hear and enjoy. In the final few songs of the set a few of members faded out and Matt sat at the drums and played a three way percussion jam with RX drummer Christopher Tsagakis and Marcel Rodriguez-Lopez of Zechs Marquise.  This was a high energy and get you out of your seat type of band that had the full attention and participation of the crowd. Most of the participation was welcomed, "BOB" was not on that list, but personally I enjoyed the humor and was overly impressed with the class and prestige in handling the disruption.

The club ended up filling in pretty tight and all the on-seers seemed to be very pleased with the overall quality of music and flow of all three performances.  If you get a chance to see these three bands on their tour don't pass it up.

 04/12/2010 21:35:00 ♥ jared () ♥ rxbandits/myspace ♥ zechsmarquise ♥ thebuildersandthebutchers